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2018: Eurosat Can Can Coaster / Madame Freudenreich Curiosités

Eurosat Can Can Coaster is a new layout.

It is, for all intent and purpose, a new coaster.

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It is being reported by a couple of fansites that Europa-Park will now operate Eursat CanCan coaster in complete darkness between now and the winter season. The reaction to the ride theming seems to have been fairly negative, and members of the project team have been personally abused on social media. I find this behaviour by so called 'fans' to be disgusting; faceless keyboard warriors who would not have the guts to say what they type to someone's face.

Additionaly, there are reports that the single rider queue on the ride has been closed due to groups who use this queue and then demand to sit together at the end. This leads to long discussions with the staff member and in turn would impact operations. Hopefully this is a just a temporary measure for whils the ride is new and very popular.

:)
 
It is being reported by a couple of fansites that Europa-Park will now operate Eursat CanCan coaster in complete darkness between now and the winter season. The reaction to the ride theming seems to have been fairly negative, and members of the project team have been personally abused on social media. I find this behaviour by so called 'fans' to be disgusting; faceless keyboard warriors who would not have the guts to say what they type to someone's face

Absolutely crazy... Shame as was interested to see the inside for myself when I visit next month, however, I guess it is just another reason to go back next year!
 
I went on can can coaster for the first time last week. It wasn't in complete darkness and some of the (2d) theming pieces light up in time to the ride.

It was a fun ride, I couldn't help but smile all the way through it. The onboard audio of the can can helps with this.

I also experienced it on VR and was amazed at how accurate the VR is when boarding the train and walking from one room to the next, although the VR queue line section is very short.

I'm sure there's still work inside the coaster to do but the queue line is a work of art and it's a fun family coaster.
 
Having ridden Can Can Coaster and Madame Freudenreich Curiosités this week, in general I think they are both great additions (well, changes I suppose) to the park.

MFC is simply a delight, and such an improvement on what it was before. It has almost a Toyland Tours-esque feel about it, especially with the birthday party scene which just tops off the upbeat nature of the ride. All the dinosaurs (especially the new smaller ones) are unbelievably cute, though I must say my favourite part of the ride has to be the kitchen scene, with dinos popping out of the oven, in the bath and doing some baking! The soundtrack works well and the queue line is lovely. It's almost a shame that the ride is such high throughput as I can never see it getting much of a queue at all, meaning that most people will miss all the charming details. It's astounding to think that what was there before was a very dark and somewhat creepy dark ride.

MEANWHILE, Can Can Coaster... The queue line is lovely, and the throughput is absolutely fine. The queue moves relatively rapidly (though not like it did in its previous incarnation), despite the addition of VR. This seems to have been worked out really well, as VR has a separate station, and trains are subtly slipped on to the main track when ready, meaning that the main ride is not affected. If only the ride itself lived up to this standard. Whilst we know the theming is forgivable, given that the park know it's inadequate, the coaster itself is not. Admittedly, the first third (before the first MCBR) is generally agreed upon to be better than it was as Eurosat, but the harsh braking on both MCBRs means that the ride is incredibly slow thereafter. Add to that the lottery of whether you will get a train with audio or not, and it ends up being that MFC is a more reridable ride than CCC.
 
What I considered to originally be the worst dark ride in the park is now the best by a country mile.

MFC is a delight; a cuteness overload oozing with charm and outrageous fun. All the new theming from the beautiful facade through to the stunning queue line makes a world of difference. The new dressing for the ride's pre-existing theming blended with the newer additions is utterly bonkers, yet it just works in a way that only EP could make it so.

Love it!
 
Can Can Coaster loses a lot of its appeal if you end up in a train without music. There’s potential for the ride experience to be improved for next season, so I’ll wait until I’ve been on in the summer before I pass judgement,

Madame Freudenreich’s Curiosities, however, needs no improvement. It’s up there as one of my favourite rethemes of all time. The story may be daft, but the new animatronics are great (Madame Freudenreich herself is very good quality for EP) as is the music, and its utterly adorable. It’s so cute that I almost cried at the T-Rex’s birthday party.

Europa-Park doesn’t have many good dark rides. But Madame Freudenreich is now one of my favourites in Europe.
 
I`m all in the MFC is wonderful-camp...it put`s me in such a positive mood. As for ECCC: Let`s wait until the beginning of next season. There was so much criticism from various sides, that I expect them to change a lot during the long winter break...
 
Madame Freudenreich Curiosités was great - I was very impressed with it and it was much more substantial a change than I had expected.

Eurosat Can Can Coaster needs significant work. The queue line is lovely, the new trains are great. However - the ride theming/lighting needs development, audio seems unreliable and the trim brakes kill the speed on the last 2/3 of the ride. Large parts of the coaster were dull. That said, the first 1/3 (off the lift hill) was actually better than the old coaster so there is hope.

Eurosat Coastiality was very cool, if overpriced.

The general work in the French area is excellent.
 
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The story may be daft
But ya know that's the whole point, it's not trying to spin a yarn!

I loved Madame Freudenreich. It's a back to basics family dark ride, very daft, memorably charming and funny, good music and animation. Absolutely loved it, really cool!

Sadly it's the kind of great, simple ride that would never get past marketing approval in a UK park, unless it was an IP or unnecessarily five times as expensive with all the jokes removed.
 
The phrase 'joie de vivre' honestly comes to mind when I try to describe Madame Freudenreich's Curiosites. It's a cheery colourful delight all about a charming Alsatian biologist who runs a curio shop, raises dinosaurs from eggs she found in a Venezuelan glacier and bakes them all sorts of treats. What's not to love in that description? Its upbeat nature, compounded by the incredibly catchy music, and little details makes re-riding addictive. The queue has some great world building too, such as certificates and newspaper articles involving the Adventure Club of Europe and a tale about poor frightened hikers. It's such a stark contrast to Universum der Energie, which was my most disliked dark ride prior to its closure. It was a very slow, dreary and boring attraction which I rode once or twice per visit out of a dark ride enthusiast obligation. So imagine my surprise, albeit of a low bar variety, that its successor would become my genuine favourite at Europa-Park.

As for how I feel about the closure of my favourite rollercoaster on park and the new rollercoaster taking its place, I'm very mixed and trying not to be too hard on Eurosat CanCan Coaster. I see and appreciate what the park was going for but, as AstroDan says, ECCC needs significant development. The facades and theming through the queue up to the station are excellent, blending it in much better with the France area than before. The music is also well produced and I like the Second Orbit homage track on the lift hill, though I can't stand the Can Can theme itself. Sadly the ride experience leaves much to be desired; the theming is hugely lacking and the coaster starts off great but dwindles once you go through Notre Dame. I hope this is all rectified in time for the 2019 summer season as CCC has a lot to live up to, not just in taking over from Eurosat's legacy but in the heavy marketing.
 
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Isn't CanCan Coaster just a temp job at the moment because the real themery in the coaster section was causing structural issues with the building, so was removed and a temporary solution used instead? Or did I imagine hearing that?
 
Isn't CanCan Coaster just a temp job at the moment because the real themery in the coaster section was causing structural issues with the building, so was removed and a temporary solution used instead? Or did I imagine hearing that?

That is what I've been told too, that the proper scenery is too heavy for the structure. It's also said that they are working on it for the summer season. I'm sure they will come up with something decent, although probably being in total darkness would have been better until they sorted something out.

Eurosat Can Can coaster is perfectly fine, but compared to the insanity that came before it's hard not to be disappointed in the tameness after the first MCBR. It feels like magnetic braking, similar to the one on Blue Fire, so I'm not sure if it's something they can be change easily.

Some of the trains have really quiet audio too, which is probably worse than no audio.

During the winter season it was making some odd noises too, which isn't great for a coaster less than 6 months old! There was a loud squeal on one of the MCBRs and on the last 2 'can can kicks' the trains were squealing from the right hand side. This happened every time on 2 different days so not just a dodgy train or 2.

I'm in the camp of Madame Freudenreich Curiosités is probably the best dark ride at Europa now, and probably one of my favourites in Europe total. It's a shame it's so hidden away! I think I saw probably 5 people ride it with me when I was there during the winter.
 
It's a shame it's so hidden away! I think I saw probably 5 people ride it with me when I was there during the winter.
When I went in the week it opened it was pretty popular (pre school holidays), every car full. I love how it's pretty understated, like a lot of Europa Park and parks like it, it encourages you to explore to get the most out of it. I knew nothing about the ride, didn't know it was new on the day and just walked in not knowing what it was. Awesome!

I think parks in the UK need to get back to basics in this way, throw in a curveball attraction next to the new headline ride to add more value to the park's line up. Like Doom & Sons with Around The World, or even Bubble Works with Vampire (which arguably turned out even more popular than the coaster!)
 
So, my thoughts on 2018's new additions. The French area of the park really feels complete now and looks stunning lit up in the dark. The boat on the lake is a lovely place to sit and enjoy a drink surrounded by beautiful architecture. The new fountains also help add to the atmosphere in the area.

Eurosat CanCan Coaster is of course the headline attraction. The queue line is great, beautful and detailed theming making the wait a more of pleasure than a pain. The queue also moves faster than I was expecting which is a reflief. The station looks just as nice as it did in the concept artwork and is a far cry from Sat's old station what with classy decor and batching in to bays.

The new trains are extremely comfortable however it is a pity that the onboard audio was not working on one of the trains; this makes a real difference to the ride experience. The ride itself is a mixed bag. I have no problems with the lift hill; the music is perfect in my opinion and the theming works. The first third of the main coaster is also an improvement on the old Sat with slightly reworked layout enhacing the experience; you even get some airtime on the bak row! The moon theming object looks good and works well.

Things do however take a turn for the worse when you hit the first MCBR. This trims terribly and kills the speed that the coaster had, something that did not happen before. This then makes the next section of the coaster somewhat boring, and the theming that you fly through from here ownwards just doesn't seem to work. I am sure this is something they are planning on working on for the summer 2019 season. The next MCBR also trims the train which means the finale is not a patch on how it used to be when you got a run on old Sat with no trims.

My biggest gripe however is the brakes. There is no theming here at all, it is just a dark space yet you can see the light ahead of you coming from the transfer track area and VR station. This does not work at all and needs improving.

Overall CanCan coaster is fine and with some tweaks it could be very good. I would like to see the first trim turned off, the second trim reduced and some more theming/light effects added to give the ride a more vibrant atmosphere. Nothing major or groundbreaking needs to change. I look forward to seeing what they do with it.

As for Madame Freudenreich Curiosités, wow, what a transformation! This ride from the queue to the very end is delightful. The soundtrack is wonderfully catchy, the scenes are busy, vibrant and full of life, the dinos look amazing and it is so unique. Kudos to whoever came up with the idea, it is genius and my favouroite dark ride at EP!
 
EP throws a couple of million euro at best at UoE; Accidentally becomes the best dark ride on resort.

EP throws tens of millions of euros on Eurosat; Has a significantly negative impact on the ride experience to the point it almost becomes the most boring coaster on park.
 
I'm surprised (and delighted) at the positive response to Madame Freudenreich Curiosités. I thought the concept might have been a bit daft for most people's tastes. It has a special place in my heart because Madame Freudenreich reminds me so much of my grandma :p
 
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